The Grid is the Goal: Alphabet’s $4.75B Bet to Own the Power Plants Behind Gemini

Alphabet has agreed to acquire Intersect Power, a Houston-based clean energy and data centre infrastructure developer, for $4.75 billion in cash and assuming the company’s existing debt, according to Alphabet Announces Agreement to Acquire Intersect to Advance U.S. Energy Innovation. The deal, expected to close in the first half of 2026, signals Google’s push to move from electricity purchaser to builder and owner of generation and infrastructure to meet rising data centre demand.

Under the terms, Alphabet will gain control of Intersect Power’s projects under development or construction, including a solar plus battery storage installation in Texas adjacent to a Google data centre campus. Intersect Power will retain its brand and operate as an independent Alphabet subsidiary, with Sheldon Kimber continuing as CEO, thereby prioritising Google’s electricity needs while preserving some external market flexibility. The arrangement underscores Silicon Valley’s anxiety over looming power shortages as AI accelerators drive rising data centre power consumption.